Agriculture in Hawaii has changed dramatically over the last four decades.

This year will see the final harvest from Hawaii’s largest farm and last sugar plantation, Hawaiian Commercial &Sugar Co. (HC&S), on Maui.

The planned transition from 36,000 acres of sugarcane to diversified crop and animal production, if successful, will be the biggest change in Maui’s agricultural landscape in 150 years.

Replacing a significant portion of former sugarcane (and pineapple) plantation lands with diversified agriculture has been quite difficult to accomplish; since 1980, the statewide acreage in crop land has fallen by 57 percent, and pasture land 31 percent.

The Statewide Agricultural Land Use Baseline 2015 study documents the many complicating forces influencing these land-use transitions since plantation closures began in the 1980s.

With the challenges of the high costs of inputs, the availability of less expensive imported products and the transportation costs of getting products to the main consumer market on Oahu or beyond, can one be both rational and optimistic about diversified agriculture replacing sugarcane on Maui?

It will not be easy, but I believe there are several encouraging indicators.

Alexander and Baldwin (A&B), the parent company of HC&S, has experience in diversification of sugarcane land. The transformation of some of its former McBryde Sugar Co. land to Kauai Coffee in 1987 represents Hawaii’s largest diversified agricultural project in the past 50 years, and today it is the largest coffee farm in the U.S. at 3,100 acres.

In 2009, A&B voluntarily designated 27,000 acres of the HC&S plantation as “important agricultural lands” (IAL), which by state law prevents its non-agricul-tural development.

This agricultural preservation of much of Maui’s central isthmus, with its naturally fertile alluvial soils, is by far the largest IAL designation of crop land in the state.

This long-term commit-ment to diversified agriculture represents a major opportunity to advance our goals for enhanced food security and energy independence.

Trials with collaborators are already underway on HC&S land to examine leases for cattle grazing operations: The Maui Cattle Co. is a consortium of six ranches with more than 8,000 head of cattle, specializing in all natural, grass-fed beef. Having increased access to high-quality grazing land would also help them achieve their vision of a sustainable ranching industry on Maui.

Energy crops also are
being evaluated, with existing trials examining feedstocks for bioenergy, biodiesel and biogas.

Multipurpose industrial hemp also is being considered.

HC&S plans to develop an agricultural park that would lease lots, with first preference given to its displaced employees.

Maui County will also soon be doubling the size of its Kula Ag Park. The expansion of agricultural parks promotes diversified agriculture by offering long-term leases with the availability of water, which can be difficult to obtain.

Other unique strengths of HC&S that favor successful diversification include expertise in disciplines required for managing an integrated agricultural business, and a parent company in A&B that has the resources and commitment to facilitate a methodical approach that will likely occur in phases and take several years.

A critical piece to achieving successful diversification will, of course, be the resolution of how much irrigation water will be made available from East Maui sources.

It will surely be less than what has been used with sugarcane, and hopefully future allocations can be agreed upon that will provide sufficient amounts for diversified agriculture, domestic and environmental needs of all users in east, central and upcountry Maui.

If equitable approaches to the water issues are applied, there is justified optimism for diversified agriculture replacing the last sugarcane fields.